Useful Bible Studies > Jonah Commentary > chapter 1
Boats in the ancient world were small by modern standards, and extremely dangerous. People were risking their lives when they travelled on them. Usually, they did it for the purposes of trade. It was possible to make great profits by this method (1 Kings 9:26-28).
Jonah wanted to go by sea to Tarshish. Tarshish was the most distant port to which people from Israel travelled for the purposes of trade. It seems to have been on the west coast of Spain. The boats had to travel the entire length of the Mediterranean Sea to get there. The distance was more than 2000 miles (3000 kilometres). Jonah went from Joppa, which was the principal port for travellers from Israel. It was about 60 miles (100 kilometres) from Gath Hepher, where Jonah lived.
God had not told Jonah to go west, to Tarshish. Rather, God had sent him in the opposite direction, east, to Nineveh. The route to Nineveh was by land. It was a long journey, about 600 miles (1000 kilometres). Jonah would probably walk the entire distance; it would take about 2 months.
Jonah did not refuse to obey God because of the distance to Nineveh. Rather, Jonah refused because he understood the character of God (compare Jonah 4:2 with Exodus 34:6-7). If Jonah warned Nineveh’s people about God’s judgment, Jonah expected them to turn to God. Then God would forgive them. However, Jonah believed that Nineveh’s people deserved to suffer that punishment. They were guilty of many very evil acts.
Next part: A terrible storm (Jonah 1:4)
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